The cherry trees lining the street where I work now are in bloom. I have the privilege of walking by them several days a week. Many of the buds have opened.

The “For Rent” sign was removed from this nest on Monday afternoon. Renovations are underway and the new tenants are noisy and cheeky….

This afternoon, there are more blossoms open. Tomorrow the show of pink against blue should be stunning.

Tuesday Blossoms and the sky is even bluer….

I have been privileged to stand watch as a four hour sunset turned into a four hour sunrise. That was many July’s ago during a 12 hour graveyard shift on the roof of a coker at Syncrude.

I do not have a photograph, only memories… Inside the plant, personal cameras are not allowed to be carried by employees.

Today is February 23, 2014.

The photos of the cherry blossoms were taken in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada where in February’s past we have huddled under umbrellas, pulling our jackets close as the cold winds blew in off of the water. I grew up here. The cold winds and wet weather of winter are what is necessary to keep the rain forests green.

Climate change is real.

I have recently read Naomi Klein’s newest book, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate. I do not believe that she exaggerates any point.

Now, I tried to put the following into my own words but, it is so perfectly written that I have copied and pasted it here for you:

“A Case for Mangroves
The approximately 70 distinct species of mangroves in the world cover roughly 17,000,000 hectares globally (Valiela et al. 2001) – only 0.12 percent of the Earth’s surface (Sullivan 2005, Ellison 2008). The greatest diversity is in Southeast Asia (36-46 species); the lowest diversity is in the United States and the Middle East (1-3 species) (Polidoro et al. 2010). Mangroves are being cut down or otherwise destroyed at such a high rate that they may be functionally extinct by 2100 (Duke et al. 2007). In just the last 50 years, 30-50 percent of the global acreage has been lost. (Alongi 2002, Duke et al. 2007) Mangroves are among the most valuable and most threatened ecosystems on Earth. The ecosystems services they provide—e.g., buffering coastal communities against flooding and storms, fiber production, habitat for thousands of species of birds, mammals and marine species—are estimated to be worth US $1.6 billion dollars/year (Polidoro et al. 2010). In addition, recent evidence suggests that mangroves sequester carbon more effectively than any other tropical forest (Donato et al. 2011).”

This is important!

~~~

There are 65 of the most influential papers on mangroves and mangrove forests listed on this site. All are worth reading but, we don’t all have that much time….

If there is a paper that you feel is missing, please add it in the comments below. I look forward to hearing from you.

There is a photograph on the home page of the Kwantlen Polytechnic University Website that I initially found amusing but after thinking about it for a while, I have decided that I actually find it offensive.

It is a photograph of a row of shoes. Three pairs are black, one pair is brown, one pair is white. Three are kind of dressy, two are kind of casual. Two are flats, three have heels. Four have a strap across the instep, one doesn’t. All five pairs of shoes would be appropriate for an entry level position in an office environment (my opinion only, I am sure you could wear them other places too….) The shoes are not the problem. The problem is the caption at the top of the photograph:

Photograph and caption are being used here for educational purposes only. Fair use.

~~~~~

There is one pair of feet filling the middle pair of low heel, white shoes. Is this it? Are the choices that these shoes represent the only ones that women can expect to fill? Are the choices of women choosing this particular university literally this narrow? And, why choose the middle pair (middle of the road)? Why choose the white pair (I don’t want to go here right now – I will go here later!)? Why choose the pair with the mid-range of heel height (again in the middle…) Why choose the middle pair (the middle pair? Did I ask this already)? Would the corresponding line-up of men’s shoes have five pairs of middle-of-the-road, entry level office position style choices? Who chose these shoes?

.

My problem:

.

Is this it? Is this all the choice that a woman entering this university can expect? Middle of the road, sensible, affordable shoes that are appropriate for an office setting? I mean, careers? Where are the CSA approved worked boots? Where are the hiking boots for the archaeologists and geologists? Where are the nursing clogs (these are not only practical but really comfy!)? This row of five pairs of shoes doesn’t even have anything suitable for wearing into a fine arts class….

.

A peak into my closet (front to back, left to right): Sensible tough walking shoes with sturdy soles. Running shoes. Strappy high heels. Hiking boots. Mid-heel black slip-ons. More heels. CSA approved green-tagged workboots (2 pair!). More running shoes. Another good sturdy pair of boots. Rubber boots. More strappy heels. A pile of flip-flops (well, those might not be appropriate in too many work environments) and a couple pairs of sensible flats (these don’t get to work much either)…. You get the picture. Life is about choice! Dress for it!

.

.

~~~~~

Where are the university watchdogs? The ones who sing at the top of their lungs if you accidentally put a “he” or a “she” into a piece of writing? Where are the people from the student groups who managed to get two gender-free washrooms at the Surrey campus? Well? Where are they? Or, is going after an approved photograph on the home page of the university website just a little too, ummmm…. up front and political?

~~~~~

Okay, link time. I am not too certain where my article links might take me after this little rant but, I do know that they will probably be interesting. If you know of any articles or papers that would fit in here, please post a link in the comments section.

~~~~~

Is there gender bias in university advertising? This article is not specific to university advertising but it is interesting and does provide an active mind with lots of relevant questions….

Does education that is traditionally gender-biased (nursing / trades) put a person at risk of being an outsider? Having been through trades training and attained journeyman status (red seal tickets), I have to say that it does. The following article, viewed from behind my background in the trades, is particularly interesting.

The recruiters are out there, at the universities, looking for future banking, civil service, retail employees. What about the other choices? Is anyone actually doing any recruiting for the people that actually fit into the non-traditional roles? They used to!

Not every question I ask gets answered. In fact, most of my questions do not have answers or at least, they don’t have easy answers…. This stroll through academia is just that, a stroll. For me, I ended up with more questions than I started with. This is not a bad thing. What are some of the questions you have?

~~~~~

If any of these links do not work, please contact me and I will try to help you find the article, paper or book that you are looking for.

If you find any broken links on this blog, please leave a comment or send me a note so that it can be repaired. Thank you….

Barrier islands are islands that form a barrier between open water and a larger body of land. They form a “first defense” of protection from sea born storms such as hurricanes. They protect the mainland against unceasing tidal action and waves. They are breeding and nesting grounds for numerous vertebrates and invertebrates. They form some of the loveliest places, visually, on this planet. But, are they special? When they are in trouble, are they worth saving?

I may or may not agree with what is in the following articles but, every one of these articles is important. I have arranged them in chronological order. My choices have taken into account the inclusions of maps and photographs (it is an easy way to compare today with yesterday). I hope that you open one or two (or all) of them. These research papers are more than just interesting and they are worth a browse through….

The following are links to grey papers, peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Together, these publications form a body of work that is more than just interesting, it is historical and most are scientific in their approach to finding out answers to questions about things like barrier islands and what they do for this planet.

~~~~~

Thesis: Quantifying the Impact of Hurricanes, Mid-Latitude Cyclones and other Weather and Climate Extreme Events on the Mississippi-Alabama Barrier Islands Using Remotely Sensed Data. pdf

Just a quick note. The front cover of this report is stamped “Distribution Unlimited.” There are publishing companies who want to charge to let you see this. It is available for free, just a bit tricky to find….

If this article is not showing in the link, try copying and pasting the full title (Land Loss Rates: Mississippi River Deltaic Plain) into a search box on your browser. This is a wonderful publication for photographs!

~~~~~

Article: The Flank Margin Model for Dissolution Cave Development in Carbonate Platforms. pdf

Authors:

John E. Mylroie, Department of Geology and Geography, Mississippi State University (publications)

James L. Carew, Department of Geology, The College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina

I have an Etsy shop! It has become a goal to be able to work without schedule, to be able to study, create, get enough sleep, and pay my bills without have to time my morning coffee to the public transit schedule….

With this in mind, I began to go through some articles that I have here. Some are printed out, some are online, some have a partially finished precis. They are all interesting and in putting this post together I have read parts of all them although, not all of them have made it here.

Why this article interested me: I love embroidery! I learned to do embroidery from my grandmother. When my daughter was small, my ability to knit helped to pay the bills. Small ventures in a cooperative atmosphere can make life easier.

~~~~~

Article: Village Development Groups: Model Based on Participation in Achieving Rural Development. pdf

Why this article interested me: After finding the article by Julia Murphy, I went looking for more. One of the keyword groups I used was “micro credit.” Developing small businesses with very small amounts of venture capital has worked and is working. I wanted to know more!

~~~~~

Article: New Venture Teams: A Review of the Literature and Roadmap for Future Research. pdf

Why this article interested me: So, starting a business… Venture capital… Taking a chance… Is there still a climate in North America for the small partnership to succeed? I found this article. It has a lot about studies, research, benefits. But, cooperation between individuals was my question.

Why this article? Because the title caught my attention! To find out more about the differences between economics majors and non-economics majors and how self-interest might play a role in business decisions, this is a lighter than average and, an interesting read!

~~~~~

Book: A Handbook of Fist Puppets. By Bessie Alexander Ficklen: With eight reproductions from photographs and numerous line drawings by Julie Brown

Published in: 1935.

Publisher: Frederick A. Stocks Company. New York.

Library Holdings: One copy (1963) is available in the reference section at the Toronto Public Library. Link

There are also many copies of this book for sale, online…

Why this book? The title of Chapter XIV is “Money-Making with Fist Puppets.” This book was a $1 find at a library book sale many years ago. I have enjoyed browsing the pages and it holds a special place on my bookshelf. Even though I will probably never venture to sell handmade fist puppets or write or stage my own fist puppet play, the author of this book encourages this as a means of creativity and possible income. There is also a short, annotated, bibliography!

Why this paper? Lewis Binford’s description of the Nunamiut, “logistically organized.” Hunter-gatherer’s used their knowledge of the world around them to survive. They had to know when to move, when to stay, who to trade with. I love reading about ancient civilizations. We have discovered a lot about many civilizations, peoples, cultures but, we can only guess at what they knew and how they knew it.

Biology is about survival and there are only two outcomes to business, success and failure. Life is about much more. It is about cooperation, successes and failures, personal growth and continuation despite the outcomes. We need to read!

~~~~~

If any of these links do not work, please contact me and I will try to help you find the article or book that you are looking for.

~~~~~

If you find any broken links on this blog, please leave a comment or send me a note so that it can be repaired. Thank you….

I am placing the link information for these articles here with the thought that easier access to free e-books such as this will encourage reading and open discussion. This is also an open invitation for you to write a precis on this book (or, on any other article or book or section of such, that you find necessary or interesting)….

~~~~~

e-Book: Voices of the Poor: Can Anyone Hear Us? Voices From 47 Countries.

I am placing the link information for this dissertation here with the thought that easier access to grey papers such as this will encourage reading and open discussion. This is also an open invitation for you to write a precis on this paper (or, on any other grey paper or peer-reviewed article that you find necessary or interesting)….

You can find more on the topic of “Homelessness” by using this search link.

~~~

Article: Reading the landscape of public libraries as place: experiences of homeless men in public libraries in Vancouver, BC.

I am placing the link information for this article here with the thought that easier access to articles such as this will encourage reading and open discussion. This is also an open invitation for you to write a precis on this article (or, any other article that you find necessary or interesting)….

Older articles such as this one can be used for comparison with the data in newer articles.

~~~

Article: Multi-Scale Characterization of Soil Variability within an Agricultural Landscape Mosaic System in Southern Cameroon.

Authors: Martin Yemefack, David G. Rossiter, Rosaline Njomgang

Journal: Geoderma. Vol. 125, pages 117-143.

Published in: 2005

My copy was downloaded on November 22, 2014. I found it using a Google Scholar search. If the link does not work, please contact me and I will try to help you find a copy.

I am placing the link information for this article here with the thought that easier access to articles such as this will encourage reading and open discussion. This is also an open invitation for you to write a precis on this article (or, any other article that you find necessary or interesting)….

Older articles such as this one can be used for comparison with the data in newer articles.